How to turn the summer lull at work into a career takeoff

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Initiative and a little luck will help.

In most industries, summer is a relatively quiet season. There is less work to be done. Even taking into account that many go on vacation. Behind the difficult winter and spring, ahead of the difficult autumn. So the processes as a whole are slowing down so that everyone has time to accumulate strength for a new leap. This calm period has its own characteristics that can be used for career purposes.

If summer is a hot season in your profession, then many of these tips should simply be applied at other times.

Analyze if you are satisfied with your job

Based on the results of the six months, it is quite possible to assess whether it suits you. Are you getting enough with premiums and bonuses? How are the relationships in the team built? Are there any processing and how obligatory are they?

This will help you assess whether you need to do something right now or leave it as it is for a while.

Try to expand your areas of responsibility

In the summer, your coworkers go on vacation. But duties do not disappear, someone must fulfill them. Perhaps, tasks will be forcibly transferred to you, which does not sound so tempting. But you yourself can take the initiative and try yourself in a new role. At the same time, you will understand whether you should aim for a similar position on an ongoing basis in the future.

Suggest your ideas

Summer is a period of calm also because everyone got tired, made the best proposals and now they are just waiting for autumn. So your ideas will be quite competitive. And if the authorities are interested, there will be half of this year left for implementation.

Talk about a promotion at your current job

By the summer, you can evaluate your performance indicators for at least five months of the current year. Replacing a colleague on vacation will demonstrate your ability to handle more work and increased responsibility. When you collect this data into a compelling speech, it’s quite possible to justify to management why you deserve a higher salary or position.

Often the hardest part of this business is getting a conversation with your boss. In summer, almost everyone has time. The most important thing for negotiations.

Update your resume

It is not necessary to publish it on the Internet - many organizations are sensitive to this and begin to suspect that employees who have updated their resumes are disloyal. But it's worth editing the document itself. Surely you have completed some projects by the current date. Or you can add numbers to the text that will confirm your professionalism. While the load has become quieter, take the time.

Take advantage of the summer labor market perspective

The selection of personnel has its own seasonality. And in the summer, companies usually post few vacancies. But there are also few candidates: often people want to return from vacation and start looking for work with renewed vigor in the fall. This means there will be fewer competitors. And there is a chance to get a position that you could not even think of during the season.

Complete your studies for the autumn job boom

In the fall, the number of vacancies and candidates is growing. If you, too, postpone your job search until September, you can make good use of the summer and pump skills that will help you qualify for better positions.

If you don't know what skills to focus on, read the relevant vacancies. Usually, they can be used to form an opinion about the requirements that employers are now making in your area.

Pump up your personal brand

Being known in professional circles makes it possible to apply for the best vacancies. And sometimes you don't need to look for a job - she will find you herself.

Building a personal brand is not easy. But in the summer there are a little more opportunities for this. For example, you can comment on the media. Proven experts during this period are not available due to vacations, so journalists are more willing to expand the pool of specialists. To know about requests, register on special services like or.

You can also think about running a personal blog, communicating with colleagues on professional sites on the Internet. In general, there are many ways.

Get involved in networking

Summer opens up opportunities for making useful acquaintances. Due to vacations, contact persons change in companies, and you can meet new employees both inside and outside the organization. Students and interns come to practice - and who knows who they will be in a couple of years.

Relax

This advice is weakly combined with the previous ones, but it is good on its own. Sometimes, for a career breakthrough, you need to stop constantly working, learning and developing. Better to rest, take a walk in the fresh air, enjoy the sun, eat fruits and vegetables, relax. Save energy in yourself, so that you can then go to a new start and rush forward.